Yes, right before a massive civil war broke out that killed hundreds of thousands of Americans. I don't think you're making the point that you think you're making.

That's one example. Politics has always been a nasty business. People who think it's worse now are either ignorant of the past or lack perspective.

You may be right about politics alone. But there's a much greater division in the US right now of worldviews, of which politics is only the most visible interface--probably because politics uniquely forces us to choose collectively one way or another.

It hasn't always been this way. It simply has been.